Setting up the shop connection
You set up the connection once under System → Plugins in the entry System - JTL Source. The settings live in two tabs: JTL Shop Database and Plugin Options.
First: create a database user of your own
Do not use the shop's own database user. Create a user on the shop's database server that is allowed to read only. The extension never writes — a user with write permissions would be a risk without any benefit.
An example for MySQL. Replace the schema name, the user name, the password and the address the access comes from:
CREATE USER 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10' IDENTIFIED BY 'a-long-password';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tartikel TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tartikelmerkmal TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tartikelpict TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tartikelsichtbarkeit TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tattribut TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tattributsprache TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaft TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftsichtbarkeit TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftsprache TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftwert TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftwertaufpreis TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftwertpict TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftwertsichtbarkeit TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.teigenschaftwertsprache TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.thersteller TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tkategorie TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tkategorieartikel TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tmerkmal TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tmerkmalwert TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tmerkmalwertsprache TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tpreis TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tpreisdetail TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.tsprache TO 'joomla_read'@'203.0.113.10';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;As of version 1.12.0 this list contains different tables than before. Up to
1.11.0 it named two tables that do not exist in the JTL shop — the extension queried them, and
the fields attributes and variations therefore always stayed empty. If you
granted the permissions one by one, please add the new ones. If you used
GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.*, there is nothing to do.
The t at the start of the table names is the usual JTL prefix. If yours differs,
adjust the names — and enter your prefix in the field Table prefix below.
If you prefer it simple, grant GRANT SELECT ON jtlshop.*. That is more generous
than necessary, but still far better than a user with write permissions.
Tab "JTL Shop Database"
| Database host | Address of the database server. If the shop is on the same server, usually localhost. |
| Database name | Name of the schema, for example jtlshop. |
| Database user | The read-only user you just created. |
| Database password | Shown masked in the form. On how it is stored, see below. |
| Table prefix | Default t. |
| Database port | Default 3306. |
Testing the connection
Above the first field sits the button Test database connection. Without saving, it checks:
- whether a connection can be established with these details,
- which MySQL version answers,
- how many tables carry your prefix,
- and whether one of the eight tables is missing without which a connection would be pointless.
If tables are reported as missing, the prefix is usually wrong.
The test is only reachable for logged-in users who are allowed to manage extensions. Up to version 1.9.8 it could be called without logging in — one more reason to update to 1.10.0.
Tab "Plugin Options"
| Shop base URL | Address of the shop, for example https://shop.example.com. The image and article addresses are assembled from it. If the field stays empty, the address of the Joomla website is used — and the images lead nowhere. |
| Default currency | Currency code for price output, default EUR. |
| Default language | ISO code of the language the article data is maintained in, default ger. It controls which translated attribute names are read. For an English-language shop, eng. |
| Customer group | The website reads the shop from the perspective of this customer group, default 1. It determines two things: which price is output and which products count as visible. In most shops 1 is the default group — which one it is in yours can be seen in the shop backend under Customers → Customer groups. |
Where the password ends up
Joomla stores plugin settings unencrypted in its own database. That applies to this password as well — Joomla offers nothing else for plugin parameters, and no extension can change that.
Hence the recommendation above: a dedicated user that may only read. Then the damage is limited should someone gain access to the Joomla database.
Connections from outside
If shop and website are on different servers, the shop's MySQL server has to accept connections from outside. Narrow that down as far as you can:
- Bind the user to the IP address of your Joomla server — that is exactly what the
@'203.0.113.10'part above does. - Open port 3306 in the firewall for that single address only.
- Where possible, route the connection through a VPN or an SSH tunnel instead of the open network.
Applies to version 1.12.0.